Cooler Master MasterCase H500P review

Join us as we review the all new H500P from Cooler Master. Yes, the 'H' in that codename is a bit of a euphemism for 'HAF'. Next to the Cosmos series it has to be the the HAF series that left an all-time impression.

Posted on: 10/10/2017 02:48 PM
I pre ordered this case a week ago. No better case design for high air flow, in my opinion. I guess I'll find out soon enough. Excellent review Hilbert! Of all the other reviews I've seen and read, Guru is the only one that pointed out there is no fan controller. Not a deal breaker, but it is a disappointment.

Robbo9999
Senior Member

Posts: 766

Posted on: 10/10/2017 03:38 PM
This is the kind of case I'd choose for my next build, which would be airflow orientated as I would want lowest temps possible with air cooled CPU & GPU, although I'd like it to look more minimalistic and less bling - but will be at least a couple of years (if not longer) until I build another!

Embra
Senior Member

Posts: 423

Posted on: 10/10/2017 03:47 PM
Nice looks case. Thanks HH. Similar to the one I have in design (Silverstone Primera PM01), but slightly better looks I think. Great movers of air!

zero_cool
Member

Posts: 35

Posted on: 10/10/2017 04:47 PM
@hh A twitter cat fight is brewing

Hilbert Hagedoorn
Don Vito Corleone

Posts: 31287

Posted on: 10/10/2017 05:38 PM@hh A twitter cat fight is brewing

They themselves screwed up the embargo time, not me. How easy & quickly they throw around accusations but then do not man up and apologize when they themselves where wrong with that accusation.

airbud7
Senior Member

Posts: 5042

Posted on: 10/10/2017 05:41 PM

@hh A twitter cat fight is brewing hahaha...yea^....i commented cause some people think its the same time everywhere on the planet....

Singleton99
Senior Member

Posts: 936

Posted on: 10/10/2017 05:45 PM
Great review HH and im still rocking the Haf X case ,shame about RGB and fan controller and would of liked more HD space .

Would the vertical graphics card mount take a 2 and a half slot graphics card by any chance ?

As for twitter i tweeted what i a think about that too

Hilbert Hagedoorn
Don Vito Corleone

Posts: 31287

Posted on: 10/10/2017 05:49 PM
Great review HH and im still rocking the Haf X case ,shame about RGB and fan controller and would of liked more HD space .

Would the vertical graphics card mount take a 2 and a half slot graphics card by any chance ?

As for twitter i tweeted what i a think about that too

It would likely fit but I would not recommend it for two reasons.

the fan side is too close to the glass which restricts airflow.a two and a half slot card = is heavy, you'd need proper support to compensate weight.

But point 1 would be my main concern. Also remember, if you do go for it, you'll need to purchase a riser cable separately, as it is not included.

Singleton99
Senior Member

Posts: 936

Posted on: 10/10/2017 05:51 PM
It would likely fit but I would not recommend it for two reasons.

the fan side is too close to the glass which restricts airflow.a two and a half slot card = is heavy, you'd need proper support to compensate weight.

But point 1 would be my main concern. Also remember, if you do go for it, you'll need to purchase a riser cable separately, as it is not included.

Thanks for cleaning that up for me and many others who maybe wanting a new case with a vertical mount such as myself

StewieTech
Chuck Norris

Posts: 2146

Posted on: 10/10/2017 06:34 PM
Seems to be built like a tank! Looks a nice balance between rough and clean and i like it. This is the type of case i would consider if i was caking a new build.

airbud7
Senior Member

Posts: 5042

Posted on: 10/10/2017 06:46 PM
it actually looks good with the lights off to....that's a nice case right there^

Great review...

Robbo9999
Senior Member

Posts: 766

Posted on: 10/10/2017 07:43 PM
Prompted by all the talk of ***** I just read their review of this case. Looks like the promise of high air flow is really not the reality - they found CPU & GPU temperatures to be disappointingly high in comparison to other cases they have reviewed. I won't link the article, but you can find it. Just can't tell how these cases will perform until you test them.

airbud7
Senior Member

Posts: 5042

Posted on: 10/10/2017 08:09 PM
did they have the airflow configuration right?......with all those fans its gotta be cool inside.

S V S
Member

Posts: 21

Posted on: 10/10/2017 08:37 PM
I have an old HAF-X case still with 6x8 TB HDDs and 2 SSDs in it. I think it is crazy a case this size would only have room for two HDDs. It is essentially the same size as the HAF-X (HAF-X is two inches taller but also has fans built into the top).

I appreciate some of the effort put into hiding wiring/components but I personally would never buy a gigantic case that can only fit two HDDs. If this case were smaller I'd have less of an issue.

DLD
Senior Member

Posts: 695

Posted on: 10/10/2017 10:07 PM
Yeah, Coolers (2 pieces on the front panel) are there, but what happend to Masters?I would not take this case, even if it was for free. "Nice looking" plastic gimmick. No front compartment for optical drives? Huge miss! It might be a technology that is slowly getting out of fashion, but hey! 80% of PC users have like hundreds of millions of CDs, DVDs, BluRay discs, with billions of games, installations, music and video/movie stuff on them. It's no master anymore - it's just a cooler(s) now. Cooler should have thought twice before they made such omission if they want to deserve the other half of their name (Master)...

Robbo9999
Senior Member

Posts: 766

Posted on: 10/11/2017 06:19 AM

did they have the airflow configuration right?......with all those fans its gotta be cool inside.

2 front, 1 rear, GPU vertical vs GPU horizontal(normal config). I think they used 100% case fan speed, less sure on this last point, but they did mention it somewhere in the article.

etmb69
Junior Member

Posts: 5

Posted on: 10/11/2017 02:02 PM
The case looks good. I was really tempted to get it to replace my CM 900III ( a great case btw) . The reason for looking for a replacement case is due to the fact that my cat love to sit on top the case blocking the airflow of my water cooling system. So this case would have been really good for me, my nerves and the cat, but the fact that the top cover seems to not close properly and easily slides open is a real deterrent for me. (And yes, only two hdd slot and no front compartment for ODD is not the best but I could have dealt with it but come on CM, make your case cat proof please but allowing the top cover to be closed with at thumb screw please)

ChisChas
Member

Posts: 87

Posted on: 10/11/2017 02:54 PM

hahaha...yea^....i commented cause some people think its the same time everywhere on the planet....

Please tell me what this about? I don't Tweet but it would be great to be in the loop............

ChisChas
Member

Posts: 87

Posted on: 10/11/2017 03:15 PM

did they have the airflow configuration right?......with all those fans its gotta be cool inside.

The other reviews seem to be happy with the case and I don't know how temps would be disappointing with two huge fans out front unless the config was weird?

ChisChas
Member

Posts: 87

Posted on: 10/11/2017 03:17 PM

The case looks good. I was really tempted to get it to replace my CM 900III ( a great case btw) . The reason for looking for a replacement case is due to the fact that my cat love to sit on top the case blocking the airflow of my water cooling system. So this case would have been really good for me, my nerves and the cat, but the fact that the top cover seems to not close properly and easily slides open is a real deterrent for me. (And yes, only two hdd slot and no front compartment for ODD is not the best but I could have dealt with it but come on CM, make your case cat proof please but allowing the top cover to be closed with at thumb screw please)

Just put an electrified matt on the top, insulated underneath so you don't get a shock, worked a treat with our cat. Mind you, pussy did give me some evil looks

ChisChas
Member

Posts: 87

Posted on: 10/11/2017 03:25 PM
Yeah, Coolers (2 pieces on the front panel) are there, but what happend to Masters?I would not take this case, even if it was for free. "Nice looking" plastic gimmick. No front compartment for optical drives? Huge miss! It might be a technology that is slowly getting out of fashion, but hey! 80% of PC users have like hundreds of millions of CDs, DVDs, BluRay discs, with billions of games, installations, music and video/movie stuff on them. It's no master anymore - it's just a cooler(s) now. Cooler should have thought twice before they made such omission if they want to deserve the other half of their name (Master)...

Spot on, M8, I have old games like Wolfie 1 (RTCW) and no optical drive = no able to play. Is it possible to get a USB extension lead because how can you use an external drive with this case? The USB ports are all at the top, where does n external optical drive sit? Perched inelegantly on the top? I use the Corsair H100i and a Corsair 650D case at the mo (with an 'old fashioned' optical drive as standard) and very happy to have it too.

Robbo9999
Senior Member

Posts: 766

Posted on: 10/11/2017 08:15 PM

The other reviews seem to be happy with the case and I don't know how temps would be disappointing with two huge fans out front unless the config was weird?

Case airflow & good temps is not just the number & size of fans you have so you can't tell without testing - I know this from testing different fan configurations on my own case. I can put 3 fans in the front of my case along with 1 rear fan and up to two roof fans, but the ideal config I've deduced for my system for low GPU temps is to have just one front fan intake & one rear fan exhaust & one roof fan exhaust. More or bigger fans doesn't equal better airflow or temperatures.

1) No way to mount an optical drive. Some of use still use optical drives. There should at least be some option to mount one. Some of use still burn DVDs and Blu-Ray disks for our home movies because our set-top boxes don't accept any other media.2) The front-panel angle is not to my liking, it's going to collect dust in the ports.3) Also, there's no USB Type-C port(s) on the front panel.4) Only 2 HDD mounting points?! In a case this large?! WTF?

I'm a big fan (pun intended) of Cooler Master, my last two cases have been Cooler Master cases but I won't be buying this one.

ChisChas
Member

Posts: 87

Posted on: 10/12/2017 11:17 AM

Case airflow & good temps is not just the number & size of fans you have so you can't tell without testing - I know this from testing different fan configurations on my own case. I can put 3 fans in the front of my case along with 1 rear fan and up to two roof fans, but the ideal config I've deduced for my system for low GPU temps is to have just one front fan intake & one rear fan exhaust & one roof fan exhaust. More or bigger fans doesn't equal better airflow or temperatures.

My Corsair 650D has a 200mm standard fan at the front, a Noctua replacement rear extract and two replacement Noctua fans in the H100i which is mounted in the top. The original Corsair fans in the rear and in the AIO cooler were too noisy but Corsair have brought out quieter fans since I had my X3S system built. There is a very useful 3 speed fan controller within a flap on top of the case, I use fast for mid-new gen games, slow for old games and non-gaming use. Essential to have full control of the fans, one way or the other.

1) No way to mount an optical drive. Some of use still use optical drives. There should at least be some option to mount one. Some of use still burn DVDs and Blu-Ray disks for our home movies because our set-top boxes don't accept any other media.2) The front-panel angle is not to my liking, it's going to collect dust in the ports.3) Also, there's no USB Type-C port(s) on the front panel.4) Only 2 HDD mounting points?! In a case this large?! WTF?

I'm a big fan (pun intended) of Cooler Master, my last two cases have been Cooler Master cases but I won't be buying this one.